Low power, NAS-only build

[Tumbleweed]

Hi,

This will be my first NAS build, but I think I've done my homework. Thanks to all of you and the resources you've provided. I'd really appreciate any feedback, thanks in advance for your time.

My planned use for this is to only use it for NAS. Important considerations for me are reliability, low maintenance, being nearly silent, low power consumption, and small form factor in that order. Cost is always a factor, but I am willing to pay a bit of a premium to get the power consumption and form factor I want.

I will be creating another separate server running several VMs for PLEX transcoding, Nextcloud, game server, and in the future probably home automation and home security setup, so the FreeNAS box really is just a NAS.

Case
Fractal Design Node 304 Black
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352027
I really like the case and form factor, but as with any mini ITX case, I'm a little concerned about space and heat. Anyone running 6 WD RE or gold drives in one of these?

Motherboard
Supermicro Mini ITX A1SAI-2550F-O Quad Core DDR3 1333 MHz Motherboard and CPU Combo
https://www.amazon.com/Supermicro-Mini-A1SAI-2550F-Motherboard-Combo/dp/B00HS4N6SE
Or
Supermicro Mini ITX A1SRI-2558F-O Quad Core DDR3 1333 MHz Motherboard and CPU Combo
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HS4NLHA/ref=psdc_1048424_t1_B00HS4N6SE

I read that the 2550 will perform slightly better on FreeNAS than the 2558, due to TurboBoost but it is slightly more expensive ($10).
The 8-core 2750 seems unnecessary for my usage case. Thoughts?

RAM
16GB total.
(2) Kingston 8GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM ECC Unbuffered DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Server Memory Model KVR16LSE11/8
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820239702

Any reasonably priced alternatives that may be better quality?

Power Supply

Seasonic 360W 80PLUS Gold ATX12V Power Supply SSR-360GP
https://www.amazon.com/Seasonic-80PLUS-ATX12V-Supply-SSR-360GP/dp/B008XEYT5M/
Or
Seasonic SSR-450RM ATX 12V/EPS 12V 450-Watt 80 Plus Gold certified PFC Power Supply
https://www.amazon.com/Seasonic-80PLUS-ATX12V-Supply-SSR-360GP/dp/B00918MQ8G/

15W/25W MB + 6x9W/7W Drives = Idle: ~57W Load: ~80W

https://www.servethehome.com/intel-atom-c2550-power-consumption-comparison/

I think the 360W power supply is big enough, according to my power calculations. The 450 doesn't cost much more, but I think idle would only be about 10% of that power supply, so definitely below optimal.

Disks

Planning RAIDZ2 with either (4 or 6) WD Gold 6TB Datacenter Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM Class SATA 6 Gb/s 128MB Cache 3.5 Inch - WD6002FRYZ
https://www.amazon.com/Gold-Datacenter-Hard-Disk-Drive/dp/B01AV168FS/

SanDisk Ultra Fit 32GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive (SDCZ43-032G-GAM46) for OS
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LLEN5FQ/

I would like an SSD instead of the USB flash drive, and have a 120GB one I could use, but am out of SATA ports on the Supermicro board (and don't trust the ASRock ones reliability and don't like the extra power consumption from that switcher chip). I don't think it's worth buying an HBA like LSI LOGIC SAS 9207-8i Storage Controller LSI00301 just to have an SSD instead of USB flash drive.

Thanks again to anyone who made it this far, I look forward to any responses.

 

[MrToddsFriends]

Case
Fractal Design Node 304 Black
I really like the case and form factor, but as with any mini ITX case, I'm a little concerned about space and heat. Anyone running 6 WD RE or gold drives in one of these?

Be prepared to use at least the medium (if not high) speed setting of the case fans. At present I have 4 WD Red in my Node 304 (case front fans replaced by Noctua NF-A9 PWM running at 500 rpm) and I wouldn't use 7200 rpm drives. Plus: I mounted a Noctua NF-A6x25 FLX (nearly silent at 1600 rpm) onto the CPU heat sink using cable ties.

Motherboard
The 8-core 2750 seems unnecessary for my usage case. Thoughts?

Might depend on number of concurrent users (SMB?). At my home (two-person household) 4 cores would be sufficient for pure NAS usage.

RAM
16GB total.
(2) Kingston 8GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM ECC Unbuffered DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Server Memory Model KVR16LSE11/8
Any reasonably priced alternatives that may be better quality?

In my A1SAi-2750F KVR16LSE11/8KF modules are operating flawlessly. If memory serves me right, I saw other users with such Supermicro boards and KVR16LSE11/8 and KVR16LSE11/8HB modules as well.

 

[Tumbleweed]

Thanks! Before doing the fan swap (and adding 1 to the CPU), what sort of CPU and HD temps were you seeing?

So CIFS/SMB would be somewhat CPU intensive? Anything else that might require an 8 core? I could go up to the 2750 if it's best.

Good to know about the RAM.

 

[Ericloewe]

Motherboard
Supermicro Mini ITX A1SAI-2550F-O Quad Core DDR3 1333 MHz Motherboard and CPU Combo
https://www.amazon.com/Supermicro-Mini-A1SAI-2550F-Motherboard-Combo/dp/B00HS4N6SE
Or
Supermicro Mini ITX A1SRI-2558F-O Quad Core DDR3 1333 MHz Motherboard and CPU Combo
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HS4NLHA/ref=psdc_1048424_t1_B00HS4N6SE

I read that the 2550 will perform slightly better on FreeNAS than the 2558, due to TurboBoost but it is slightly more expensive ($10).
The 8-core 2750 seems unnecessary for my usage case. Thoughts?

C2x50 all the way for you. As for C2550, it's adequate for all basic workloads. Non-trivial jails would be better off with C2750.

RAM
16GB total.
(2) Kingston 8GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM ECC Unbuffered DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Server Memory Model KVR16LSE11/8
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820239702

Any reasonably priced alternatives that may be better quality?

Get something from the QVL. Supermicro support will do their damned best to blame "incompatible" RAM for any problems you might ask for help with.

Power Supply

Seasonic 360W 80PLUS Gold ATX12V Power Supply SSR-360GP
https://www.amazon.com/Seasonic-80PLUS-ATX12V-Supply-SSR-360GP/dp/B008XEYT5M/
Or
Seasonic SSR-450RM ATX 12V/EPS 12V 450-Watt 80 Plus Gold certified PFC Power Supply
https://www.amazon.com/Seasonic-80PLUS-ATX12V-Supply-SSR-360GP/dp/B00918MQ8G/

15W/25W MB + 6x9W/7W Drives = Idle: ~57W Load: ~80W

https://www.servethehome.com/intel-atom-c2550-power-consumption-comparison/

I think the 360W power supply is big enough, according to my power calculations. The 450 doesn't cost much more, but I think idle would only be about 10% of that power supply, so definitely below optimal.

G-450. You want as few fixed cables as you can get. Even so, you'll have a dangling CPU power cable which won't be used.

 

[MrToddsFriends]

Thanks! Before doing the fan swap (and adding 1 to the CPU), what sort of CPU and HD temps were you seeing?

The (2-pin) front case fans didn't start in the low speed setting of the fan controller, maybe due to manufacturing imperfections. As I was aiming for a low noise build I replaced them by 4-pin fans controlled by the mainboard (not because of high HDD temps).

CPU temp: Can't give any exact number, but I remember that the heat sink felt rather warm when idling and that threshold of pain was quickly exceeded when running prime95 on 8 cores. There is not much airflow behind the PSU in a Node 304.

 

[wblock]

being nearly silent, ... and small form factor

These conflict with each other. A larger case can have larger, slower fans and better airflow. Both the noise and form factor issues can be avoided if the NAS can be located away from commonly-used rooms.

 

[SweetAndLow]

Planning RAIDZ2 with either (4 or 6) WD Gold 6TB Datacenter Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM Class SATA 6 Gb/s 128MB Cache 3.5 Inch - WD6002FRYZ

Not a good hdd choice for a small case, silent and low power. Get something that is 5400rpm so it uses less power, gives off less heat and is quieter.

 

[Tumbleweed]

These conflict with each other. A larger case can have larger, slower fans and better airflow. Both the noise and form factor issues can be avoided if the NAS can be located away from commonly-used rooms.

Yes, they do conflict with each other. Unfortunately, the apartment I live in doesn't have any uncommonly used rooms. I can use some of a closet for this which muffle the noise. Maybe I'll see if I can fit a Node 804 in that space. Heat and sound concerns shouldn't be an issue with that case, it just seems a shame to put a mini-ITX board in a micro ATX case and not take as much advantage of the form factor.

 

[Tumbleweed]

Not a good hdd choice for a small case, silent and low power. Get something that is 5400rpm so it uses less power, gives off less heat and is quieter.

I'd love to, unfortunately I already have the drives, as I've been using them in two different PCs. If I add 2 drives for a total of 6 I'll probably get the Reds, but I'm kind of stuck with what I have.

 

[joeschmuck]

I can use some of a closet for this which muffle the noise.

Don't do that, you will just have a hot closet and your system will suffer for it. Hard drives are not cheap once you start buying six or more.

I'm going to be completely honest here and if quiet is what you must have then get a mid size case designed for high air flow. Look in my signature, this is a fantastic case, it's all black and ultra quiet and my system is a typical fast system (not speed demon but could be). I cannot hear the fans nor hard drives unless the side cover is off and it's ultra quiet in the room. I would not place any computer system in a bedroom either because someone will end up hearing the hard drive periodically access and I know it would annoy me like crazy. Also my front case fans run on 7VDC vice 12VDC (how I powered it) which causes the fans to rotate at a medium speed to ensure a reasonable air flow over the hard drives and still forces warm air out of the case. I have only the two case fans and then the CPU box fan and heatsink. Do not use 7200 RPM drives, I prefer WD Reds which spin much slower and ensure the hard drive parking timer is set for 300 seconds and if you can hear the heads loading, then disable the timer, but I doubt you will hear it.

Get a motherboard with 8 SATA ports and then you can install a SSD as your boot device, six hard drives, and have one open SATA port to assist in replacing failing hard drives.

Lets talk about you choice of six 6TB hard drives in a RAID-Z1 configuration. Don't! If you have a lot of data on these drives then it will take a very long time to rebuild a new drive (could be a week) and all the while your system would be at high risk of data loss if another hard drive fails during this process. Run a RAID-Z2 configuration. You need to re-evaluate this.

Also I do not recommend the USB 3.0 flash drive, many die a premature death due to heat issues. I'd recommend a USB 2.0 flash drive if you can't use a SSD. Also, you only need a single boot device, just keep a copy of your configuration file (what you should do anyway).

If you have not played with FreeNAS yet then I strongly recommend that you build it up in a VM and play with it. You son't need to store a lot of files to set it all up and have a good learning time.

 

[joeschmuck]

I'd love to, unfortunately I already have the drives, as I've been using them in two different PCs. If I add 2 drives for a total of 6 I'll probably get the Reds, but I'm kind of stuck with what I have.

Well then you won't have a quiet system. Do you best to mount the drives quietly with dampeners to reduce vibrations to the case.

 

[Tumbleweed]

Thanks, joeschmuck, that's a lot of good feedback. One thing I wanted to clear up is that I definitely planned on using RAIDZ2, not RAIDZ1. I'll be looking into some of the alternatives you and others have suggested.

 

[Arwen]

Note that there is nothing stopping you from using same sized, but different model hard drives in
the same ZFS vDev, (aka RAID-Z2). You can use 4 x WD Gold and 2 x WD Reds without any
problems. (Except the vDev will be as fast as the slowest drive.)

I personally use 2 x WD Reds and 2 x WD Red Pros, so hopefully they will have different failure
rates. If I were to do it over again, I would have done a real frankenstien pool, (WD Red, WD Red
Pro, Seagate NAS & HGST).